Automatic car-brake



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

WA. WILDE.

AUTOMATIC GAR BRAKE.

No. 323,766. Patented Aug. 4, 1885.

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. 2 sheets -sheet 2.

(No Model.)

W. A. WILDB.

AUTOMATIC OAR BRAKE.

Patented Aug. 4, 1885.

N. PETERS, Photn-Lithugnyhnn Wahingtnn. o. c

UNITED STATES PATENT OF ICE.

WILLIAM A. W'ILDE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

Y AUTOMATIC CAR-BRAKE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 323,766, dated August 4, 1885.

Application filed June 18, 1884. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, WILLIAM A. WILDE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Ohicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic Oar-Brakes; and I hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same.

My present invention is in the nature of an improvement upon the device for a like purpose for which Letters Patent of the United States No. 283,446 were granted to me August 21, 1883. The principle upon which my said former device operated-via, that of the action of a springis employed for the operation of my improvement, though the brakeactuating spring occupies a different position in my new from my old device.

The object of my improvement is, primarily, to make the brake automatic in its action for all purposes at the starting ahead and stopping of a car or train as well as in backing. Reference to my patent above mentioned will show that the brakes normallyset with the spring at its natural tension were released on pulling out the draw-bar by compressing the spring, and were set by its recoil produced by pressure against the drawbar. As by the backing of a car or train, the draw-bar is necessarily pressed inward,whereby the brakes, through the medium of the mechanism shown and described in my said patent, would become set, means for releasing the brakes by hand to permit backing up were an essential feature of the device, so that to effect this operation the device did not work automatically.

A further object of my improvement is to provide an automatic car-brake, the construction of which shall be very much simpler and by far less expensive than that of my aforesaid original device.

In my present improved construction the normal condition of thebrakes, as in my former device, is set, they being retained in such condition by a spring which is slightly distended for the purpose, their release, however, being effected either by pulling outward or forcinginward the draw-bar against the resistance of the spring which is connected with them.

Myimprovement consists in the mechanism hereinafter described and claimed,which operates automatically to set the brakes by means of the resistance of a spring, and automatically to release them by pulling outward or forcing inward the draw-bar to overcome the resistance of the spring.

In the drawings, Figure 1 shows the bottom of a car with my device in position, and Fig. 2 a longitudinal vertical section taken through the center ofa car having my device in position.

A is the draw-bar provided with the usual draw-bar spring, 25, and arranged to reciprocate in the common manner of drawbars. To the under side of the draw-bar A the end b of a lever, B, fulcrumed at a central point, as shown at 00, upon a floor-beam of the car, is pivoted.

O is a lever similar to the lever B, and fulcrumed at a central point, as shown at 00', to a support, 3, projecting forward from the bodybolster or cross-beam of the floor of the car. A chain, 1', is hooked at one end into the end I) of the lever B, and at its opposite end to the end 0 of the lever 0, provided with an opening to receive the hook of the chain. A chain, q, is hooked at one end into an opening in the end b of the lever B, and at its opposite end to the end 0 of the lever .G.

D is a hand-brake mechanism of the usual construction operated from the top of thecar, and from the rod of which "a chain, q, extends to the chain q, with which it is connected.

A helical spring, E, placed horizontally with the length of the car, is hooked at one end upon a support, 1;, provided upon a floorbeam, and at its oppositeend into an opening provided in the end 0 of the lever O. A rod or chain, 0, connects the lever G from its end 0 with the rear brake=lever,which is connected by a rod or chain, 0, with the forward brake-lever, as shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings, to cause the one actuated by the spring brake-lever, and the lever ]3 lies parallel with the ends of the ear. Vith the forward movement of the locomotive the draw-bar A is pulled outward, drawing the end I) of the le- 5 ver 13 and the end a of the lever 0, connected with the lever B by the chain r,along with it. The action of the draw-bar just described distends the spring E by the backward movement of the lever O, with which it is connect ed, thus slackening the rod or chain 0 and releasing the brakes, which will remain released so long as the draw-bar is drawn out, though when the speed of the locomotive is slackened the draw-bar of each car will obviously, owing to the power of its spring t, as

sume its normal position, and thus automatioally regulate the speed of the ear to correspond with that of the locomotive.

In backing up a car or train of cars the draw- :0 bar of each car is forced inward, forcing the end b of the lever B backward and slackening the chain 1-,- but, pulling the end 0 of the lever 0 forward, owing to its connection through the medium of the chain with the :5 end I) of the lever B, the brakes are thus again released in a manner similar to that produced by pulling out the draw-bar, and are maintained so as long as the draw-bar is being forced inward.

0 One purpose of the hand mechanism D is to operate the brakes in case of fracture of the spring E. It will be observed that the chains and spring E are connected to their various supports by means of hooks. This is to per- 5 mit their being readily disconnected. Should the spring E become broken from any cause it may be readily removed and the chain q disconnected from the lever O and hooked into the rod or chain 0. lVhen the parts shall have 0 been thus arranged, the brakes may be operated by hand through the medium of the mechanism D and chain The construction above set forth depends for the releasing of the brakes upon the disten- 5 tion of the spring E, produced by the movement of the draw-bar. It is quite obvious,

however, that the spring E could be located to operate by compression to release the brakes, and the location of the levers and chains could be arranged accordingly. Such construction is also within the spirit of my invention. It is also quite obvious that the spring E would operate equally well if it were connected with the end 0 of the lever C to be distended by the oscillation of the latter in a 5 direction opposite to the direction of distention afforded by its position, as shown in the drawings.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination, with the sliding draw bar A of a car, of a lever, 13,,fulerumed toward its center and secured at one end to the said draw-bar, a lever, O, fulerumed toward its center and connected at one end with both ends of the bar 13, and a spring, E, secured to the bottom of the car and connected with one end of the lever G, which is connected with the brakes, the whole being constructed and arranged to operate substantially as described.

2. The combination, with the sliding drawbar of a car, of a lever, B, fulcrumed toward its center at one side of the draw-bar and secured to the draw-bar at one end, a lever, O, fulcrumed toward its center upon the support 5, secured to the under side of the car, a chain or rope, 1, connecting the end of the lever B,secured to the draw-bar with one end of the lever O, a chain or rope, q, connecting the opposite end of the lever B with the end of the lever O at which the chain or rope 'r is connected, handbrake mechanism D,connected with the chain or rope g by means of a chain or rope, q, spring E, connected at one end to the under side of the car and at its opposite 8 5 end to the free end of the lever C, and a rod or chain, 0, connecting the lever O at its lastnamed end with the brake-lever, the whole being constructed and arranged to operate substantially as described.

XVILLIAM A. VVILDE.

YVitnesses:

THOMAS A. BANKING, DOUGLAS Dvnnnron'rrr. 

